


The Grumpy Mechanic tumblr AU

by MoragMacPherson



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Bodhi Rook Week 2017, Headcanon, M/M, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-09-12 07:54:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16869076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoragMacPherson/pseuds/MoragMacPherson
Summary: Bodhi becomes the Rogue Squadron mechanic





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another quick salvage from tumblr-- I swear there's another part of this but I can't seem to find it at the moment, will dig a little more. For now, chapter two will be the home of a series of headcanons developed from this fic that are also at risk of being deleted from my now muted tumblr. From the tags on the original (posted April 21, 2017): this is the first bit of that 100k+ commentfic astoria and i have written seriously we've gotten through the entire war but it takes some polishing and i'm not sure if it's a multichaptered deal or if it's gonna be a series of vignettes but here it is nonetheless could also be called the headcanon verse this is where we came up with most of them.

It comes down to a simple issue of supply and demand: the Rebel Alliance has very few supplies, which translates into little demand for cargo pilots after the Yavin evacuation. Which is sort of fine with Bodhi: he has developed a few other skills in his time, and once they’ve all resettled on Thila the skill the Rebellion seems to need is his gift as a mechanic. “Red squadron just put in a petition to rename themselves ‘Rogue squadron,’ in honor of your team, would you mind being assigned to them?” Bodhi can’t help but feel a bit honored, so he agrees and sits down with several pots of caf and the technical specs for the T-65 X-Wing, determined to learn everything there is to know about the ships that managed to exploit Galen’s sabotage and destroy the Death Star which destroyed his home.

Compared to their Imperial counterparts the T-65s are marvels of durability and simplicity. There are a few… interesting design choices that Bodhi notes here and there, but they’re definitely not seemingly-disposable death traps like most TIE fighters. Which is an especially good thing because Bodhi starts to get attached to the Rogue Squadron pilots pretty quickly, from helping Janson with a few pranks to wiping the smirk off of Antilles’ face during a sabacc game to…

Well, Luke’s different. He’s the Hero of the Rebellion, the poster boy, and even Bodhi has to admit that the Alliance has lucked out in that because there’s something eminently likeable about Luke Skywalker that’s apparent from the start to pretty much anyone lucky enough to meet him. Luke’s the one who destroyed the Death Star— everything in Bodhi’s life up to now seems to have happened so that Luke would be allowed to take down the Empire almost single-handedly, and Bodhi's… okay with that. Luke’s a nice enough person— he’d been so sweet when they first met, he’d been  _excited_  to meet Bodhi, which is something Bodhi still doesn’t quite get, and ever since Luke’s done nothing but go out of his way to be kind and helpful, even bringing Bodhi caf when he’s up late making repairs to Luke’s X-Wing.

Which is a blasted good thing, because Luke’s X-Wing… Bodhi understands that Luke is a Jedi, has an ability to manipulate the Force in ways beyond even Chirrut, but still: technology has fundamental limits. Luke appears to have no regard whatsoever for these limits, yet somehow manages to fly his ship home in… close to one piece every single time. Somehow. Not even Wedge’s perpetual dings in his armor due to an overly light hand with his deflector shields causes Bodhi quite as much dismay as the number of times he has to replace the power couplings and rerouters in Luke’s sublights, or the day Luke comes back in missing the better part of an s-foil but nonetheless emerges from the cockpit with a grin on his face, even as Bodhi rants at him about how it shouldn’t even have been possible to  _fly_  the blasted thing in space, much less land it in atmo.

Making the situation even more infuriating to Bodhi, the Rebel Alliance is not exactly in the position to purchase as many replacement parts as Bodhi would like. But he and his mother hadn’t had a lot of money when Bodhi was growing up, and if there’s one thing that Bodhi’s become an expert in during his short life, it’s making do.  After the first few weeks, Bodhi’s datapad is a mess of revised schematics detailing exactly  _how_  he’s completely rebuilt Luke’s T-65, with all of the modifications and customizations he’s made along the way. The other mechanics don’t even bother looking at it any longer, because it takes less time for Bodhi to just finish whatever else he might be working on before running Luke’s maintenance and diagnostics than it does to explain  _why_  the fuel lines are in a completely different place or whatever else has them totally stumped. Artoo seems to tolerate the changes, and Luke’s ship continues to return, mission after mission; all in all, it’s an arrangement that works, and Bodhi’s happy with that. Besides, if anyone else works on Luke’s ship, they might move the notes.

Bodhi likes the notes. He tries not to think about how much he likes the notes. It’s right up there with not paying attention to how much Luke seems to grin at him when he’s ranting about physics, the cost of power couplings, and the tolerances of durasteel in the pantheon of things Bodhi tries not to think about too much.

See: especially in the weeks right after Scarif, Bodhi has had some… memory issues. They’re not a huge obstacle in his work, but especially when learning how to maintain a completely new spacecraft, it sometimes helps to have visual reminders more immediate than yet another tab on his datapad. So he carries flimsi, a pen, and tape with him as well and isn’t shy about labeling things he comes across— just little reminders to himself at first: things he’s changed, things he’s done, things he needs to do, that sort of thing. Bodhi’s usually very thorough about making sure he’s cleaned them all up when he goes, but there’s this one note, less a reminder to himself and more just an exclamation to himself, “Is he using his 4L4s as engine brakes?” that he truly does forget to pick up out of the cockpit one day.

The next time he sets down to start diagnostics, the note’s still there, but with a reply written beneath it. “Yes.”   
  
Just the one word, but definitely not in his own hand, Bodhi isn’t imagining it, and Luke has wandered off elsewhere, so Bodhi doesn’t have the chance to explain to him face to face exactly  _why_  that’s such a horrific idea. Instead he pulls out another little bit of flimsi, tapes it to the bottom of the existing note and scrawls out: “This explains so much. Knock it off.”

And things sort of devolved from there. While Bodhi might have some residual guilt about yelling at the golden boy Hero of the Rebellion to his face (not that it ever seems to stop him from going off on his rants in the moment, but still, Luke Skywalker is also the reigning king of the kicked puppy look as well any time that Bodhi goes slightly too far and— that’s just more guilt than he can handle), he has no trouble continuing the arguments through the notes. There are several tails of them now trailing through the cockpit of Luke’s T-65. Some of them include little diagrams Bodhi’s drawn to explain  _why_  Luke’s breaking the laws of physics as well as the Rebellion’s meager budget— Bodhi’s sometimes tempted to add 'and my heart’ but he doesn’t because… well, because he doesn’t want to see the kicked puppy look again and maybe because it’s a little too close to certain truths that he’s not quite comfortable admitting to himself yet, much less to Luke. Luke’s added a few drawings as well— he’s a better pilot than an artist, but Bodhi treasures every single one nonetheless. Bodhi likes the drawings and the notes, and they feel sort of… private, and so he’s a little territorial about Luke’s X-Wing, and has managed to fall asleep in it in the middle of repairs more than once, because fixing it is  _his_  job and no one else’s.

Bodhi watches it fly into the hangar and finishes another mug of caf before grabbing his datapad and walking up to meet it.  Luke’s handing off that Artoo unit of his— it’s a snippy, fiesty little thing that seems to thrill in getting into fights with Kaytoo over… whatever it is that droids could get into fights with each other about, Bodhi’s not sure. What Bodhi does know, judging by the sounds of Luke’s engines winding down, is, “You’re using your 4L4s as engine brakes again, aren’t you?” he groans, grabbing a diagnostic kit from his tool chest.

Luke winces and turns to face Bodhi, his hair a sweaty mess, cheeks flushed bright red, and those blue eyes of his twinkling without a hint of actual remorse, blast him.  "I don’t do it on  _purpose_ … usually,“ he adds, just to infuriate Bodhi a little bit more because it’s one hell of a maneuver to be pulling off on instinct— though Luke’s turning off his targeting computer at the Death Star was apparently instinct as well, but— who knows, it’s still infuriating.

Bodhi has the total cost of rerouters that he’s replaced thanks to Luke’s bad habit pulled up on his datapad already, had been planning to add it to another bit of flimsi, but Luke’s here now, may as well show him. "No one  _else_  shares your habits, and you’re going to bankrupt the entire Rebellion on those rerouters,” he says, pushing the pad into Luke’s hands.

“I am not,” says Luke, his face starting to turn a bit more red as he starts to read.  If they were in the Imperial Navy Luke’s habit would have more than just Bodhi getting after him about it… but the Rebellion isn’t the Imperial Navy, that’s why Bodhi’s here in the first place. Luke finally looks up at him, “I promise I’ll stop, okay? Kind of hard to forget with all the notes on my controls, now,” he adds, a teasing grin on his face.

Bodhi shakes his head and grabs the datapad back. “Didn’t stop you today, and those are supposed to be temporary— I’ll clean them up, I promise.”  
  
Luke actually reaches out and grabs Bodhi’s shoulder. “No, no— I don’t mind them,” he says, ducking his head a little.

Bodhi blinks— apparently he’s not the only one who likes their little notes— but they’re still against regulation and Bodhi’s trying to impress a little discipline on Luke. He breathes out a sigh. “Well, do you still need the reminders?”

“Clearly,” says Luke, pointing at the datapad, the look on his face almost shy, which doesn’t make any sense. It’s enough to make Bodhi smile despite himself.

“Fine, flimsi’s cheaper than most parts anyway,” he says.

Luke grins at him again. “You should leave me as many notes as you’d like, then.”

Bodhi shakes his head, turning around to start climbing into the cockpit— he’s not really ready for a full dose of the Skywalker charm, not when he has so much work to do. “Oh, I’m sure I’ll find something new you’ve managed to fly this ol’ girl home in spite of,” says Bodhi.

“Oh, I bet you will.” mutters Luke from the bottom of the ladder.

There’s something about his tone that strikes a note of fear in Bodhi’s heart as he clambers into the cockpit, and he peeks back out of it almost immediately. “That’s not– please don’t take what I said as a dare,” Bodhi calls out. Skywalker’s already looking up at him for some reason and Bodhi frowns. “Is there something wrong?”

Luke blushes a little and snaps his gaze away before ducking his head. “Nope! Fine, everything’s fine…”

Bodhi shrugs— he really has no idea what’s going on inside that man’s head, does he? Rather than focus on the incomprehensible, he focuses on what he does understand, surveying the damage. “Oh, that’s a rich thing to say, I’m starting to understand why that Artoo unit of yours is such a snippy little thing, how does he even survive this?” He glances down and picks up a doodled bit of flimsi, holding it up outside of the cockpit. “And is this supposed to be a sarlaac?” he asks.

It’s several long seconds before Luke replies. “Uh… sure, yeah,” he says, followed by a long sigh. “And hey, I always do my best to make sure Artoo doesn’t get hurt, he’s my friend, you know.”

“Survive, sure but he must be going completely nuts rewiring this thing on the fly, he’ll be crazier than the Falcon’s mainframe soon if you keep this up,” says Bodhi, tucking the sarlaac back where it had been perched.

Luke lets out a sound of disgust and calls up, “Please don’t even joke about that.”  

Bodhi grins— apparently there are some impossibilities, like trying to talk to the  _Falcon_  that are beyond even Luke’s understanding: albeit it seems like Han and Chewbacca are the only other mechanics around who can assist Bodhi in his rebuilds and actually contribute.  Bodhi feels the need to give Luke a little credit.  "At least you seem to have a dim idea of what your deflector shields are for, unlike Antilles…“ Bodhi’s voice trails off as he reads the addition to the engine brake note: "Your eyes  are even prettier when you’re complaining about the cost of re-routers,” he reads aloud, all but dumbfounded. He peeks out of the cockpit.  "Luke?“

Luke appears a little startled, all but frozen with his own eyes looking very bright as he stammers out. "Well… they are.”   
  
Bodhi’s 'pretty’ eyes feel very wide right now and his cheeks are redder than Luke’s. “Please don’t bankrupt the Rebellion because you like my eyes when I complain, I’ll find plenty of cheaper things to complain about, okay,” he blurts out before he can stop himself, clamping his hands over his mouth for a couple of seconds before adding, “Could you go get me a cup of caf, please, it looks like I’m going to be in here awhile.”

Luke’s eyes widen a little as Bodhi rambles at him and he grins after a moment, pushing away from his position against the ladder and throwing Bodhi a lazy salute and a wink. “Yes, sir, whatever my favorite mechanic wants,” he says because apparently he  _wants_  Bodhi to have a heart attack.

“You outrank me,” Bodhi calls out as he settles back into the cockpit— oh, Luke’s going to be the death of him. But still, as he pulls out his diagnostic tools, Bodhi can’t help but look at the notes and smile.


	2. Headcanons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A series of headcanons that inspired this fic, preserved here in case of tumblr deletion. All made in concert with attackedastoria.

March 22, 2017

[93 notes](http://moragmacpherson.tumblr.com/post/158713491240/bodhi-leaves-little-notes-all-over-the-place-when#notes)

Bodhi leaves little notes all over the place when he’s fixing Luke’s X-wing: sometimes ones for himself which he forgets to clear away, others intended for Luke so he’ll stop needing to have Bodhi rebuild damn near the whole ship every time Luke comes back from the mission – this equipment has actual limits.  
  
Luke, not very good at flirting, tends to leave the notes where they are/put them back where he found them, and writes little flirty jokes, comments and bits of encouragement on the bottom/back for Bodhi to find next round. By the time they start dating some of their conversations stretch over several dozen pieces of flimsie all taped together. 

 

March 25, 2017

[70 notes](http://moragmacpherson.tumblr.com/post/158802071815/anytime-luke-calls-bodhi-sir-usually-after-a#notes)

Anytime Luke calls Bodhi, “sir,” (usually after a long technical rant, but sometimes after Bodhi’s asked him or told him to do anything, even in bed) Bodhi can’t help but reply, “You outrank me.”  It’s their version of “I love you/I love you too,” even after they’ve long since started using the l-word.

 

March 29, 2017

[301 notes](http://moragmacpherson.tumblr.com/post/158989236305/lukes-asking-chirrut-about-jedhan-wedding#notes)

Luke’s asking Chirrut about Jedhan wedding traditions – he’s going to make an honest man of Bodhi, he swears – and Chirrut grins. “The most important of our marriage traditions is the vow to your beloved: look for the Force and you will always find me.” From where he’s cleaning his guns, Baze can’t help but smile to hear the words again.

 

 

April 03, 2017

[311 notes](http://moragmacpherson.tumblr.com/post/159172069710/lukes-always-scouring-the-markets-he-comes-across#notes)

Luke’s always scouring the markets he comes across for Jedhan items to bring home to Bodhi. Bodhi loves most of them, but still. “It’s an egg-slicer, Luke. Full points for trying to be romantic, but while it is a piece of my homeland, it’s still a blasted egg-slicer!”  
  
Luke, undeterred, regifts it to Chirrut, who is  _thrilled._  “Baze, we need to cook some eggs!”


End file.
